Help Orangutans Thrive by Rewilding Their Forests

One of the best ways to see the real impact of our project to plant trees for orangutans and other wildlife is to use camera traps to see animals returning to the restoration site. These nifty bits of kit are set up in the new forest and in the nearby primary forest, and take a snap every time an animal walks in front of them. 

We always love checking the cameras to see who's been roaming past, and we got a treat recently when one camera captured a photo of a very special orangutan.

Bagong - a 30 year old flanged male orangutan - looks like he's posing for our camera trap. Two years ago our rescue team relocated him from farmland, where he was threatened with being shot for crop raiding, He now looks to be enjoying life in the Gunung Leuser National Park! Bagong is a bit of a local celebrity, as his longcall can be heard booming through the forest for miles around!

Bagong, and all orangutans, need trees! Please consider setting up a regular monthly gift to support this project, and help us restore more critical forest for orangutans and the many other species they share their habitat with.

The Leuser Ecosystem is threatened with development under a regional plan which could wipe out millions of acres of prime rainforest. This is the only place on earth where critically endangered orangutans live alongside rhinos, elephants and tigers. SOS and its partner the Orangutan Information Centre are now part of a consortium which aims to prevent the devastation.

The regional plan would enable mining, road building and oil palm plantations to deforest the ecosystem on a massive scale.   The Consortium has two main aims: to stop, with legal challenges if necessary, the plan going ahead; to establish ways of protecting key areas.  These include setting up patrols to enforce protection and stop poaching, and promoting a spatial plan of its own which has protection of the ecosystem and its rare biodiversity at its heart. Your donations are helping all this go ahead.

There is also the practical work on the ground which is making such a big difference. Your donations have helped us see rare species return to our restoration site. Excitingly these camera trap images, taken in June, show the potential of forest restoration for attracting back orangutans and elephants. We now have eight organic tree nurseries established, providing jobs and training for the local community, and have planted well over a million trees. On July 16 it’s Bonus Day on Global Giving so your donations are worth 40% with match funding.  Please support us by donating through the website between 9am and 11.59pm EDT. Your help will make a really big difference. Thank you.